moderate

[ adjective, noun mod-er-it, mod-rit; verb mod-uh-reyt ]

See synonyms for: moderate moderated moderating moderately on Thesaurus.com

adjective

kept or keeping within reasonable or proper limits; not extreme, excessive, or intense: a moderate price.
of medium quantity, extent, or amount: a moderate income.

mediocre or fair: moderate talent.
calm or mild, as of the weather.
of or relating to moderates, as in politics or religion.

noun

a person who is moderate in opinion or opposed to extreme views and actions, especially in politics or religion.
(usually initial capital letter) a member of a political party advocating moderate reform.

verb (used with object),mod·er·at·ed, mod·er·at·ing.

to reduce the excessiveness of; make less violent, severe, intense, or rigorous: to moderate the sharpness of one's words.
to preside over or at (a public forum, meeting, discussion, etc.).

verb (used without object),mod·er·at·ed, mod·er·at·ing.

to become less violent, severe, intense, or rigorous.
to act as moderator; preside.

Origin of moderate

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English moderate (adjective) moderaten (verb), from Latin moderātus (past participle of moderārī “to mitigate, restrain, control”), equivalent to moderā- verb stem (see modest) + -tus past participle suffix

synonym study For moderate

1. Moderate, temperate, judicious, reasonable all stress the avoidance of excess—emotional, physical, intellectual, or otherwise. Moderate implies response or behavior that is by nature not excessive: a moderate drinker, a moderate amount of assistance. Temperate, interchangeable with moderate in some general uses, usually stresses the idea of caution, control, or self-restraint: a surprisingly temperate response to the angry challenge. Judicious emphasizes prudence and the exercise of careful judgment: a judicious balance between freedom and restraint; judicious care to offend neither side. Reasonable suggests the imposition or adoption of limits derived from the application of reason or good sense: a reasonable price; a reasonable amount of damages allotted to each claimant. 8. See allay.

Other words for moderate

1 reasonable, temperate, judicious, just, cool, steady, calm	2
average	8
ameliorate, pacify, calm, mitigate, soften, mollify, temper, qualify, appease, abate, lessen, diminish

See synonyms for moderate on Thesaurus.com

Opposites for moderate

5, 6

radical

See antonyms for moderate on Thesaurus.com

Other words from moderate

mod·er·ate·ly, adverb
mod·er·ate·ness, noun

Words Nearby moderate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use moderate in a sentence

In recent weeks, mortgage rates ticked upward, reacting to fiscal stimulus bill progress and signs of moderate improvement in the economy.
Mortgage rates stuck in neutral amid economic uncertainty | Kathy Orton | February 11, 2021 | Washington Post
The greater use of subsidies, however, is a strategy that has consensus support among House and Senate Democrats, from liberals to moderates, though it is opposed by most Republicans.
Affordable Care Act subsidies likely to increase under congressional plan | Amy Goldstein | February 11, 2021 | Washington Post
They could moderate everything, or they could moderate nothing, and they still won’t be liable.
Twenty-Six Words Created the Internet. What Will It Take to Save It? | Stephen Engelberg | February 9, 2021 | ProPublica
How Nextdoor moderates its content also makes things murkier.
How the Covid-19 pandemic broke Nextdoor | Rebecca Heilweil | February 9, 2021 | Vox
In November of that year, Voytek moderated a standing-room-only talk at the Society for Neuroscience conference on how to use it.
Brain’s ‘Background Noise’ May Hold Clues to Persistent Mysteries | Elizabeth Landau | February 8, 2021 | Quanta Magazine

Alcohol and sugar, even in moderate amounts, are not only sinful but poisonous.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze | Lizzie Crocker | January 9, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
Yes, the gun: “While this gives a moderate exercise to the body, it gives boldness, enterprise, and independence to the mind.”
Forget the Resolutions; Try a Few Declarations | Kevin Bleyer | January 1, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
As with so many things, keeping screen time in moderate amounts seems key.
Yes, Your Toddler Can Watch TV: The New Rules for Screen Time | Russell Saunders | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Too moderate and the more radical groups call you a snitch, jeopardizing your standing and authority at demonstrations.
De Blasio and the New York City Protesters Have No Blood on Their Hands | Jacob Siegel | December 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Many Muslims may disagree with my view, or interpret Islam in a more moderate way, but I cannot accept this religion myself.
What It’s Like to Be an Atheist in Palestine | Waleed al-Husseini, Movements.Org | December 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
If the paper is about twelve by eighteen inches this will accommodate moderate examples of most of the fronds.
How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard Bastin
The duty on importation had been only twopence per pound, a moderate sum in view of the prices realized by the sale of it.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.
moderate salaries prevailed, but the sovereign was worth much more then than now, while wants were fewer.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland | Joseph Tatlow
As long as an emergency truck could squeeze through at moderate speed, that was enough.
Fee of the Frontier | Horace Brown Fyfe
In moderate cases variations in size and shape of the red cells and polychromatophilia occur.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd

British Dictionary definitions for moderate

moderate

adjective(ˈmɒdərɪt, ˈmɒdrɪt)

not extreme or excessive; within due or reasonable limits: moderate demands
not violent; mild or temperate

of average quality or extent: moderate success

noun(ˈmɒdərɪt, ˈmɒdrɪt)

a person who holds moderate views, esp in politics

verb(ˈmɒdəˌreɪt)

to become or cause to become less extreme or violent
(when intr, often foll by over) to preside over a meeting, discussion, etc

British and NZ to act as an external moderator of the overall standards and marks for (some types of educational assessment)
physics to slow down (neutrons), esp by using a moderator
(tr) to monitor (the conversations in an on-line chatroom) for bad language, inappropriate content, etc

Origin of moderate

C14: from Latin moderātus observing moderation, from moderārī to restrain

Derived forms of moderate

moderately, adverb
moderateness, noun
moderatism, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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